Southern businesses keen to reopen

Southern businesses believe they can operate safely, complying with physical distancing and hygiene requirements, and would like to be allowed to open and get the economy restarted, the Otago Southland Employers’ Association says.

The Government is expected to decide whether to continue or come out of the Level 4 lockdown next Monday and it will signal how that might look tomorrow.

Employers association chief executive Virginia Nicholls said businesses wanted certainty to be able to make plans for when the country came out of Level 4.

"Businesses would like to see less emphasis on essential businesses, and more on safely operating businesses.

"If a business can demonstrate good compliance with public health standards, including social distancing and hygiene standards, then there needs to be consideration for it to open."

Many businesses needed the wage subsidy expanded, as well as support with their leases and cashflow, Mrs Nicholls said.

She also wanted the reintroduction of the 90-day trial period to allow businesses to take on staff who wanted to move to a new role or industry.

Hospitality businesses around Dunedin were in doubt as to how to move forward this week.

Dunedin bar Ratbags and Innocent Bystander general manager Phil Ellis hoped the wage subsidy would be rolled over from its expected end date at the start of June.

"[It] would be a tremendous help — it will keep people in work.

"If we can get some sort of business rolling and some activity going — we can try and return to normality again."

Mark Fraser co-owns Dunedin restaurants and cafes Jizo, Nova and Mac’s Brewbar Stuart St with his brother Nick Fraser and said they had not had to lay any workers off thanks to the wage subsidy — something he and his brother were also receiving.

"If the wage subsidy wasn’t there we’d be gone, there’s no two ways about it."

He was not expecting the country to move into Level 3 next week but once they had clear information as to what was happening they would make a plan to get the business open again.

Foleys general manager Bruce Muldrew said his company was carrying out essential work during the lockdown in plumbing, electrical and mechanical services. But it was not clear what services the company would be able to perform once the alert level was dropped.

"It will potentially have some impact on job efficiencies but we certainly understand that may be necessary.

"We’re certainly of the view companies have to demonstrate ... those requirements that will be in place around those other levels of lockdown. But ... [we] need to get back to work."

Jeweller Brent Weatherall said he did not have a plan for operating in a Level 3 scenario — unsure of how he would be able to have customers coming in and out of his store with heavy restrictions.

"All I said to my staff was they are my most important asset and whatever we can do to get through this together ... but until we get the big announcement from Jacinda next week ... I just don’t know what the future holds quite honestly."

The Treasury released a range of scenarios yesterday on how the economy could be affected at various alert levels — including the possibility of unemployment being kept below 10% and returning to 5% next year.

It also said that without support such as the wage subsidy scheme unemployment could have hit 13.5% during the four-week lockdown and further time in Level 4 could lead to an unemployment rate of between 17.5% and 26%.

Further assistance measures for business will be announced today in an online speech from Finance Minister Grant Robertson.